


Love and Medicine

by Dzuljeta



Series: Wounds [1]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Aspirin, Blood, Bruises, Chance Meetings, Cuts, F/M, Fear, Fluff, French Kissing, Headaches & Migraines, Kissing, Marriage, Name Changes, Near Death Experiences, Pain, Post-Torchwood, Relief, Reunions, Romance, Side Effects, Telepathic Bond, Telepathy, The TARDIS Takes Control, Time Lady Rose, Worry, changes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-18
Updated: 2016-07-20
Packaged: 2018-06-09 05:57:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 18,913
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6892837
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dzuljeta/pseuds/Dzuljeta
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Martha Jones knows aspirin is lethal to Time Lords. She can only hope the pack of aspirin pills the Doctor has in his hands does not mean what she thinks it does… </p><p>Wounds, pt.1</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Love and Medicine: Chapter One**

"Aspirin? Doctor, you can't take these! You might die!" Martha looked him over with panicked eyes. However, the alien appeared to be perfectly sensible. "You keep reminding me aspirin could be lethal for you… What is it doing here? Were you out to buy these? What for?" She hoped he was going to say something about refilling the ship's medical resources, about humans getting all kinds of stupid diseases, but the Time Lord only shrugged.

"These are not for me, Martha," the Doctor seemed distracted. "I've realised we're out of it, that's all. Just give the box to me."

Martha grimaced. "Sure, so you could poison yourself?"

"I think I have every right to ask of you to leave for even getting these insane ideas," he rolled his eyes at her in disapproval. "Anyhow. If it makes you feel better, you could come with me. Protect me from myself, or whatever," the alien gave her a knowing smile. His pain, sorrows or joys had nothing to do with anyone but himself.

Soon, the Doctor understood the TARDIS was determined not to allow them find the room he wished to enter so desperately. Not just yet, not together with the distrusting companion. The Time Lord was afraid of the possible outcome, with Martha having some sort of tender feelings for him, and what not.

"Martha. I think I'll find my way from here, thank you _very much_."

The dark-skinned girl understood the Doctor wished for her to leave him, and rolled her eyes. "Not until you promise you won't do anything stupid."

"I give you my word. The TARDIS will show you the way to your room. Now, go!"

The human shook her head at him incredulously, but began to slowly slog away from him. After all, there was nothing she could do.

* * *

Seeing Martha disappear from sight, the Time Lord sighed with relief. He knew his brilliant ship would make sure everything ends up just fine. Thankful the TARDIS was always on his side, he followed the route that would lead him to where he needed to be – to his suffering blonde companion. _Rose._

_He never had the time to think about it properly. And it didn't matter._

" _Doctor," she had whispered, tears in her eyes. "Hello."_

" _Rose. Welcome back." He hadn't asked her anything, not having fully grasped Rose was there with him._

" _This thumping pain in my head is going to kill me," she had muttered before the Doctor had the chance to pull her into a bone-crushing hug. "I'm certain you don't have anything to ease headaches?"_

" _I'm afraid not. But I could go grab some from the nearby chemist's. Could you wait for a few minutes, Rose?"_

_Of course, the girl had assured him she'd wait, for as long as it took._

" _Don't move away. Don't wander off."_

" _I promise," she'd said. This time, she was going to stay put. Willingly._

_It wasn't until the Time Lord returned to the TARDIS that he remembered his most recent companion, who has but sent an incredulous glance his way._

" _Aspirin?"_

Unwilling to do anything, feeling as if her head were breaking to pieces, Rose was sitting on the bed in her chamber. She wondered what was to happen now that she was back. There was this question she had to ask him-

"There you are, Rose. A nice pack of aspirin tablets," the Doctor smiled at her uncertainly, handing her some of the needed medicine.

"Thanks," she grabbed it from him, suddenly unsure, a glass of water in one hand, a pill in the other.

"Just swallow it already, dear. It hurts me to see you in pain."

"Likewise."

"But… I'm not in any kind of pain?"

Rose decided to let it go. After all, it was none of her business. "I'm glad to know it, my Doctor…"

"I'm so happy to have you by my side again, Rose. Thought I've lost you, and-"

The human grinned sheepishly at him. He was _certain_ she'd come to stay! Then, she saw his face darken.

"I'm sorry…" it was more than probable she was the one guilty about the Doctor remembering the- the events. She gulped.

"Hey, at least now I'll get to finish the sentence," the Time Lord grinned, taking her cold hands into his.

"Yes?" She could not hide her surprise, knowing perfectly which sentence it was. "You haven't finished a lot of sentences."

"Don't you remember? When you told me you loved me, and I couldn't-"

"Of course. Of course I remember!" _Keep having nightmares about it every night._ Tears started rolling down her cheeks almost immediately. The Doctor knew he couldn't allow this. Not any more. Not ever again.

"Rose Tyler. I cannot live without you. Never could. Never would." Ah. He could, and certainly would, if he _had_ to… but that was not something he chose to linger on.

The companion knew just as well what that meant, but beamed at him instead. "Doctor… Is this a more sophisticated variation of "I love you?"

He grimaced at her. "Well-"

She rolled her wide hazel eyes at him. "You don't actually _have_ to say anything."

The Doctor but gazed at the human, both relieved and confused. He felt he needed to say _something_.

"Could we- I don't know- return to this later?" his words were soft and barely audible, but the tone alone was more than enough for Rose, who wrapped her arms around him... Like so many times before, yet it was somehow different.

The Doctor smiled, seeing infinite joy in his companion's eyes. "My Rose."

They were so close to each other their lips were almost touching. It was clear both of them were fighting the undeniable wish to finally break the tension – where had _that_ come from – in the most pleasant way possible… Her hazel eyes were burning, the lips slightly parted…

The Doctor had completely forgotten about the other woman on board, deciding if something had to be sacrificed, it had to eventually be his conscious defences against this pink and yellow human. He knew he couldn't keep them up forever. These eyes… It seemed Rose was having slightly better self-control, but-

Martha almost broke in into the room, and stopped right in her tracks, seeing the unmistakable position the two were in.

"I'm sorry!" She backed away a few steps. "I… didn't mean to interrupt anything," the dark-skinned companion muttered, covering her face with her hands. "The TARDIS-"

Rose backed away from the alien, her face flushed. _For what reason?_

"Don't you dare blaming my brilliant ship, Martha." The Doctor's arm was wrapped protectively around Rose, who, while the unexpected appearance startled her a little, was trying hard to suppress her giggles at the absurdity of the situation. Of course. It was just their luck.

"She must have thought it best to lead you to me." _You must have been panicking hard._ "But, hadn't I told you-" The Time Lord sounded and felt flustered. It wasn't that he wasn't happy about Martha caring for him or about her not following his implied orders, no!

It wasn't about her breaking the joyful reunion with the woman he loved, nor was it because of-

"I was _terrified_ , Doctor! Who knows what could have entered your mind!"

-because of that.

"If I remember correctly, I've told you the medicine was _not_ for me, yes?"

"Yes, but-"

"It was for me," Rose smiled at the girl apologetically. She seemed sweet. "I should have introduced myself first, before I-"

The Doctor noticed the blonde's discomfort and brushed a finger over his lips, his eyes begging for her to remain silent.

"You were _hurting_ , Rose..."

"No need to worry now, Doctor. It's over."

"Sorry, could I ask you something?" Martha finally found the strength in her to address the girl. Beautiful and _blonde_. Obviously.

"Of course," Rose smiled at her, not expecting the blatant question from her.

"Are you… no, of course you are- would you want me to leave, now that you're here?"

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "We haven't even discussed this yet! The staying bit, and… _are_ you staying with me, Rose?"

The Tyler girl rolled her big brown eyes at him. "Which part of _forever_ didn't you understand, you-?"

The Gallifreyan grinned at her, remembering Martha just after she coughed. It was her who was hurting now. She knew she probably shouldn't feel this bad about being completely ignored and basically forgotten by the Time Lord, who had this tendency anyway, but it still wasn't pleasant.

"Sorry. Rose probably doesn't even know who you are!" _Rose_ this. _Rose_ that. Martha Jones averted her eyes.

"I believe I know. Nice to meet you, Martha..?"

"Jones. Martha Jones. A medical student." One thing was for certain, the most recent companion understood. She was no longer needed there. The following words of the Doctor but confirmed her fears.

"Are you sure you're all right?"

The pink and yellow human but shrugged at this Martha girl hopelessly. Headaches seemed to have become a rather constant occurrence for Rose, especially since she'd been separated from the Doctor, seemingly for an eternity. Might be she was mistaken about the intensified strength and frequency of those, of course. Maybe this girl could tell her if something was wrong?

"I am, thank you," Rose assured the Doctor, sending him one of her sweetest smiles.

Martha had to remind the fair-haired woman the question. "So, do you wish me to leave?"

Rose stared at the other girl, not believing her ears. Why would _anyone_ want to leave the Doctor? This life, this adventure, this-

"Absolutely not. The more, the merrier? What do you say, Doctor?"

Martha shrugged uncomfortably. It was obvious she was going to become the fifth wheel if she stayed, no matter what Rose had said. "I really, really need to get back to my family," the almost-doctor hurried to speak, aware the Doctor was only looking at the blonde, possibly not hearing her.

"Do as you think best," the Time Lord responded vaguely.

Rose glared at him incredulously. "Are you going to let her leave, just like that? It was _I_ who wasn't invited."

"But you _are_ staying, I take it."

Rose grinned at both of them sheepishly.

"Don't you think I might disturb you, the pair of lovebirds that you are?"

"Oh, we're not-" The Doctor pressed Rose's hand harder. For how long will they be fooling themselves? He had sworn to himself that, if she ever returned to him, there wouldn't be any more pretending… Oh, well. He was bad at this.

Martha addressed Rose instead, her tone incredulous. "Not yet, or not any more?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Previously...**

_"Oh, we're not-" The Doctor pressed Rose's hand harder. For how long will they be fooling themselves? He had sworn to himself that, if she ever returned to him, there wouldn't be any more pretending… Oh, well. He was bad at this._

_Martha addressed Rose instead, her tone incredulous. "Not yet, or not any more?"_

**Love and Medicine: Chapter Two**

Martha met the murderous glare the Doctor sent her as soon as the question, either naïve or one supposed to have confirmed her doubts - escaped her lips. She shuddered, having turned her eyes away at once, suddenly feeling utterly mortified to have as much as dared to ask such a personal question.

"How… how are you here, Rose?" The Doctor asked, choosing to deliberately ignore the other companion for the time being.

Rose sighed, responding to the other companion on board first. "I can't answer this just yet, Martha."

She was not certain if the relationship between the Doctor and herself was ever going to progress, but pushing things in any way did not feel right. Discussing it with a person she did not know yet was out of the question.

"None of my business, I understand," Martha Jones hurried to assure them. It was true she had secretly hoped the blonde would begin telling her there was nothing going on between the two… especially since the Time Lord seemed ready to deny everything, no matter the self-explicatory almost-kissing scene she was unlucky enough to have witnessed.

"As for my re-appearance, Doctor… this is kind of complicated."

 _Not 'I must leave you again' kind of complicated, I hope…_ "I have all the time in the world, Rose." _We both do._

The blonde shrugged at him hopelessly, thankful for the encouraging smile the other companion sent her way. "The walls of Time, they- they can be overcome… apparently."

Of course, she _had_ to take the difficult route, instead of just telling him-

 _I can see as much, Rose._ "How?" The Doctor's interest was getting the better of him.

"As far as this universe is concerned, we tried our best not to damage anything," Rose whispered at him. "We haven't damaged anyone, but-"

The Doctor clenched his teeth. _Torchwood._ "Anyone but-? Rose?"

"Anyone but me," the final word was but breathed out. Both of the two other passengers could easily see the pain in her eyes – her wicked headache was far from over. The mere idea of giving her more of the aspirin pills made the Gallifreyan shudder inwardly. However, he knew that was the most likely step tobe taken. Especially since even seeing her in pain was breaking his hearts.

Without a moment's hesitation, he sat down beside her onto the bed and found her hand.

"Rose- I'm afraid I could hurt you by even asking," he muttered, "but do you feel well enough to tell me something more about it?"

"I think I could, but-" She bit her lip, eyeing the dark-skinned companion worriedly. Whatever she was about to tell the Doctor did not have to be heard by anyone else.

"Hey, I can always leave!" Martha shrugged, managing to hide her disappointment well. "Personal things don't interest me," she assured them.

 _Of course they don't_. The Doctor fought the wish to glare at the more recent companion again. No matter his feigned ignorance, the Time Lord knew it was quite the opposite. "Actually, Martha…"

The dark-skinned companion did not lose hope until the last moment. _Say 'I think you could stay', say it!_

"I believe it would indeed be better if you left us. We have quite a lot to discuss, and she might want to make some changes in her room after all this time-" _Fine. This one was both stupid and incredible._

For a moment, he believed Rose would object, but all she did was stare straight in front of her.

"Okay, so I'm going… I'd be in my room, if you need me, yeah?" Martha was visibly waiting for an invitation to stay with them, but none came, so she headed straight to her room, the way to which the TARDIS seemed eager to show her this time.

As soon as she was out of sight, the Doctor breathed out in relief, his voice soft. "I'd like to know as much as you can tell me, Rose."

"It was… painful. Everything. This new universe… Everything in it only brought more and more pain. Sorrow… grief. Sadness- _because you weren't in it-_

 _No_ , the young woman decided. This was not the right time to simply pour everything out just like that. Rose was looking for words, which was rather hard, as either the medicine was not of a sufficient consistency or some part in her mind had not fully registered she was finally back in her home universe… and was there to stay.

Noticing the concerned look on the Doctor's face, the Londoner winced. "The headache won't go away completely just yet. Sorry," she muttered apologetically.

"I'm not thoroughly experienced with the correct dosage of this. Do you think you need another pill, or has the medicine not worked yet?"

"I don't know." _I don't care._

"Should I fetch Martha?"

"No!" Rose realised she must have sounded hysterical, and bit her lip. "No need. Really. Have you read the indications properly?"

"Indications? Ah, yes, indications! I-"

"Don't worry, Doctor," she smiled at him. "Everything should be written in the instructions, or on the package, at least…"

"Yes, of course! I'll run and read it-"

The girl sighed. Her Doctor, missing the obvious. "It's on the table on your left," she smirked.

"Oh." He focused on the package. The instructions were of no help. Studying how to poison himself was never his thing. "One pill, one and a half, or two? How serious is this?"

"It doesn't matter. I'm quite- quite used to it, and-"

"You, Rose Tyler, won't need to go through any more of this, for as long as you are here with me. I promise," he squeezed her hand tightly. "I only need to call Martha, she must know how to-"

 _Stupid Time Lord._ "No!" she begged. "She cannot help me with this, trust me. Nobody from that parallel universe could. Not even Jack."

"But Martha is from our- your original universe! _This_ universe, and she is certainly experienced enough in dealing with this, and I'm sure she could-"

 _Daft, even._ "I don't need Martha. I need _you_ ," she said simply. "I am generally capable of taking care of myself, but, now that the universe is different again… I need to re-adjust, yeah?"

The Doctor peered at Rose, the sudden realisation hitting him hard. "Rose- how often have you been crossing different parallels?" If the companion herself had told him, albeit with some reluctance, that she had been the one having had to face some damage… The incessant headache must have been related to her experience. _My Rose._

"I have stopped counting after the sixth unsuccessful attempt of reaching this universe," she sighed. "Someone else was doing the counting afterwards. According to Jack, this is the fourteenth," the companion was slightly uneasy. "But what does it matter now?"

The Doctor pressed her hand. "You have returned, because of me," he whispered, incredulous. "Because you, after all this time, still wanted to?"

Rose did not lower her eyes, and was presented with a variety of conflicting emotions in his. "You know why."

He nodded, a small smile on his face. The hazel eyes could not lie. "And because I know, my dear Rose, that you are not going anywhere this time… You'd have to allow me into your brilliant human mind, so that I could-"

"Maybe later?"

The Time Lord was honestly surprised.

"Are you certain? I could simply-"

There was nothing _simply_ about it. Her mind, her thoughts, her feelings were the things Rose was ready to share with the Doctor eventually. But _eventually_ did not mean now.

"I _had_ to flee," she spoke in a small voice instead. "They were after me. I had nowhere to go. Jack was too busy to constantly keep an eye on me, the Torchwood team were getting suspicious-" Rose took a deep breath. "We had to make a decision, he and I. And we've decided the only thing I could do was try and find you," she shrugged. _No matter the risk. No matter the cost._ "As simple as that. Not that there was ever an option of _not_ doing that, mind you," she sent him the familiar grin.

"Fourteen attempts." This definitely explained the headache. "Are you sure those working in that wretched place weren't misleading you intentionally?"

Her response startled him. "Now that I think of it, yeah. All some of them wanted was to finally get rid of me." Rose has been the unwelcome addition to the team, however experienced and reasonable. What was even worse, the blonde was a dear friend of the Captain's. The fact she would not allow anyone but Jack run any of the needed tests on her did not help her acquire any of the sometimes-needed support. She was regarded as a strange specimen, protected by her powerful father and the head of Torchwood. "I have spent so much time working on and toying with the Torchwood equipment, that-" she did not succeed in suppressing a sob.

"Surely, you must know I-" _would have done everything in my power to get to you_. _But I was too stupid. Too much at a loss. Then, Donna came…_

"Forgive me."

The Londoner eyed him searchingly. "You've done no harm to me. You have nothing to apologise for, Doctor."

While the Time Lord did not share her approach, he decided to let it slide. "You are not mad at me, then? Not even for travelling with someone else?"

"It depends," she teased. "But I wouldn't be able to leave now, even if you-"

"Even if I did not want you here? Don't be silly, Rose Tyler. You are all-"

"Even if you were in love with somebody else. Martha Jones, for example." While Rose could tell no such thing was happening between them - the Doctor's familiar rudeness spoke better than any explanation - she tried to fish for a reaction from him anyway.

"You realise you are indeed being downright silly, Rose?" He placed his hands on her shoulders. "The only person whose well-being was, and is, my main concern, is a certain blonde currently watching me."

The said blonde rolled her eyes at him playfully. "I guess I should be flattered?"

"I think you should be, yes. In what way should I tell you-"

 _That you love me, Doctor?_ "You don't have to say anything, remember?"

The Doctor seemed lost for a moment, holding her firmly by the shoulders.

"She likes you, you know," Rose gave him a small smile. "Martha, I mean."

"Well, don't they all?"

The companion rolled her eyes at him. "I don't know where this conversation is going, but I'd like another pill first, yeah?"

The Doctor believed to have known exactly where it would have taken them, had the human not changed the subject… And he knew for sure the relief after having let go of her to fetch a glass of water was not something he was happy about…

"I think you should really allow me in, Rose. I won't be prying, just removing the cause of your pain – without the need of medicine."

"I don't think so, my Doctor."

The Time Lord was watching her, suddenly remembering something. Apparently, Rose Tyler could see the unmistakeable dread in his eyes, as she gave him an intense, yet calming look. She was still Rose, always his. Rose Marion Tyler… always.

"There are things I'm not ready to show you, Doctor. Not just yet, yeah?"

"Of course. You have told me so much already, Rose." Probably too much for one day. The Gallifreyan could not help but wondered if these were only her human secrets she was unwilling to share… It looked and felt anything but that. He had to find out as much as he could, without causing suspicion…

"You do remind me of someone, and it frightens me," the Doctor spoke after a momentary thought. After all, this might have just been a stupid idea…

"Yes?"

"You might not remember…" _I hope you don't._ "There was this Bad Wolf entity once-"


	3. Chapter 3

**Previously…**

_"You might not remember…_ I hope you don't _.There was this Bad Wolf entity once-"_

* * *

**Love and Medicine: Chapter Three**

That was when Rose began to laugh, but the laughter bore no glee or amusement in it whatsoever. Some things were not so easy to forget… things she had been painfully reminded of back in Pete's World. She did not know why these memories had been returned to her at all, or if they had come back on their own, possibly as yet another side-effect of all the dimension-jumping. But this was the very last thing the blonde wished to be reminded of.

Rose took a deep breath, uncertain about the amount of information she was ready to disclose to the Doctor. After all, it was supposed to be forgotten… "It's still a very painful subject for me. Could we just-"

Oh, so she _remembered._ The Time Lord froze, realising just how complicated everything has suddenly become. It was bad. _Really, really bad..._ "Let it go? Of course, if you want…"

Rose shrugged at him helplessly. She _wanted_ to talk about it, knew she _had_ to… but could not make herself to even begin. "It's all a bit too soon for me, yeah?" She reached for the glass the TARDIS had been helpful enough to fill with water, and took another pill. With the soothing presence of the space-and-time ship, the pain was not half as intolerable – but the girl was not taking chances.

"Yes, of course…" He scolded himself inwardly. Was it ever really necessary of him to- "Sorry." An unwelcome silence followed, yet it took some time for one of them to actually begin speaking again.

"Rose?"

"Doctor." All of a sudden, this little word on her lips seemed to have more meaning than anything in the uncountable number of galaxies he was aware of. "I have missed you."

"Likewise," he echoed the word Rose had used not so long ago.

She grinned at him. "May I?" Losing herself in a long-expected hug felt like one of the best things she could ever hope for.

"You don't need to ask," he whispered, pulling her closer. Once again, they found themselves in a situation almost identical to what had been accidentally interrupted by an unknowing companion – neither felt like moving away, neither dared to actually close the barely existing distance between them… no matter the breaths they were both holding.

There was just one thing left to finish the picture - Martha Jones entered the room just when the Doctor has decided to finally make a move.

"Martha." This time, the Time Lord did not attempt to hide his irritation, nearly snarling at her. "Have you ever heard of knocking?"

Rose turned her eyes upwards, not willing to show anyone her annoyance. This time, it wasn't the Doctor that was pulling away…

The scene in front of her has made Martha want to disappear off the ship as soon as possible. The open spite the Gallifreyan did not bother masking has but increased the wish.

"I am sorry! I didn't know- Did not expect-"

Rose shook her head, incredulous. If this scenario was ever going to repeat itself ever again, she swore nothing would make her repeat the same mistake of doing nothing…

"You must have learnt the not-knocking thing from the Doctor," unlike the Time Lord, Rose has made sure her discontent did not show. Twice in one day was already beginning to feel like some kind of an unpleasant custom… "It's understandable; he never does it," she added with a very tiny and very fake smile. "Were you in need of something?"

"I- I just thought I could get acquainted with- with you a little bit better, yeah?" Martha spoke uncertainly, avoiding the Doctor's look. She sounded so uncomfortable the blonde companion's irritation evaporated.

"Of course. What would you like to know about me?"

Martha bit her lip, realising she was not certain if she wanted to know anything at all… Or everything. "I don't know. Favourite things? Education?"

The Doctor was visibly boiling with rage at her words. _Education? Education?!_ It was clear to him the dark-skinned companion wanted to know if Rose – still a complete mystery to her – was really someone impossible to defeat. He knew her answers would only put Martha's hopes up again… And some wicked part of his was already rejoicing at the possibility to show his more recent companion her place. Anger was _not_ a good emotion.

"I love chips, and, as the Doctor once put it, I have an unhealthy affinity towards pink. The colour, I mean. Oh, and as for education… I left school too soon to receive my A-levels," she spoke simply. "The 'I will do anything you want me to' kind of teenage love… you know, the usual," she sighed heavily. "Ended up working in a shop," she winked at the Time Lord, who smiled at her, ignoring the other companion completely.

"And, well… the rest is history," she shrugged.

Martha looked thoughtfully at the Doctor, whose annoyance seemed to have gone the moment Rose grinned back at him. "I feel like taking a bath now. Is this okay with you?" She felt she _needed_ some time to herself. What was better than a hot bubble bath? The companion was certain this was going to help her feel a part of the long yearned-for world again.

"Sure, go ahead, Rose… Nothing's changed in your bathroom," he smirked at her, happy she did not make a remark on that, his cheeky human…

"No quarrelling, yeah?"

"Who? Me? Us? Quarrelling? No such thing is going to happen, I assure you!"

 _I hope so._ With a smirk, Rose left them alone. If there ever was some doubt in her heart about the Doctor or Martha, it was gone now.

The dark-skinned companion was silent for a while. It seemed the Doctor would have allowed Rose do anything – perhaps that was why she had sounded completely self-assured before letting him know about her intention… She sighed meaningfully, turning her voice down, just in case. "Do you love her?"

The Time Lord froze, not having expected this kind of attack from her. " _Love_ is a very big word."

"And a very big feeling," Martha looked at him searchingly. "Big feelings require big words."

The Doctor took a deep breath. Did he love Rose? Yes.

Was he ready to admit it publicly? No.

To Martha? No.

To Rose? She knew… _Or did she?_ Either way, she kept preventing him from saying it. In a way, it was for the better, although- the Time Lord had to admit it confused him greatly.

"Doctor?" Martha was worried. The Doctor seemed lost in his thoughts again, and this never ended well.

He caught her look. "Ah, yes- wait, what were we talking about?"

"About your relationship with Rose," she reminded.

Oh, so they were discussing personal things now… This was the worst direction a conversation could ever take. It was never supposed to happen. Not with a companion. Not with someone other than Rose, at least…

Luckily, it took no time for the Doctor to remember where they were this time. "Yeah?" Now that they were on the subject- "Sure. Would you mind telling me where she's gone to?"

The companion rolled her eyes at him. "She's just gone to take a bath, why? Are you afraid she is about to be abducted by aliens? I mean- not your kind of aliens, of course-" Martha bit her lip, having realised her mistake. His obsessive behaviour towards the blonde was both amusing and disturbing. Were they like this all the time?

The Time Lord shrugged it off. Jeopardy-friendly as Rose was… "It's just that... Never mind. Let's just wait until she returns?"

Martha shook her head, disbelieving. "Of course. I could murder for some tea. Would you like a cuppa while we wait? If you tell me how she likes her tea, I'll make her one as well." The alien nodded at her distractedly.

It was weird, simply sitting like that, with no hostile beings around to run away from. Martha knew she needed to find herself something to do, probably something time-consuming. A book, perhaps? A complicated one? Anything to keep her thoughts away from the Doctor…

"You see… Rose is-"

One thing was clear to the companion – the unexpected return has lessened her chances of ever as much as receiving any additional attention from the Time Lord. If it meant she had to turn every conversation to his precious Rose to ever get any of it… oh, well. Martha was determined to find some excuse to leave soon, anyway.

"She is what, Doctor?" If he needed some pushing, all right…

"She doesn't- doesn't feel well, and it worries me, yes-"

 _Of course._ "What about the aspirin?"

"Well- I wouldn't want to poison her!"

"Unless Rose is allergic to it, nothing bad would happen. And she most certainly is not. Here, let me see…"

Just like the blonde companion, Martha had noticed the package immediately. "Just give her one more pill in the evening. She should be as fit as a fiddle tomorrow."

"Yeah?" It felt strange relying Rose's well-being on someone else's hands. "Sometimes I wonder what I would do without you, Martha Jones…"

Martha rolled her eyes. "You'll survive, now that _your_ _Rose_ is back. I am _not replacing her_ , remember?" It was clear the Doctor was in need of a companion, no matter if it was her, Rose or anybody else…Sadly, the green monster of jealousy was still somewhere nearby, threatening to gnaw at her – at least she was good at hiding her feelings…

"Yes," he agreed, clearly not wishing to talk to anyone until he could lay his eyes on the Tyler girl again and make sure she was indeed all right. Such periods of inexplicable silence were not new to Martha Jones, and she preferred having to endure yet another such period of time to unwillingly becoming part of yet another conversation about _her_.

"I still don't know how your friend likes her tea," she reminded him.

The conversation was interrupted by the familiar blonde a moment later. "Two sugars, if we're talking about the pink mug. Thank you very much, Martha!" Rose smirked at her, her eyes sparkling.

"You do realise it's an enormous mug?" the dark-skinned girl watched her with mock-horror. "I swear, I have thought it was a wisely decorated flowerpot!"

Rose sniggered. "You're not the first one to say that," she smirked at her. "Let's just say I drink a lot of tea."

Martha shrugged at her, amused. "Milk?"

* * *


	4. Chapter 4

**Previously…**

_"You do realise it's an enormous mug?" the dark-skinned girl watched her with mock-horror. "I swear, I have thought it was a wisely decorated flowerpot!"_

_Rose sniggered. "You're not the first one to say that," she smirked at her. "Let's just say I drink a lot of tea."_

_Martha shrugged at her, amused. "Milk?"_

* * *

**Love and Medicine: Chapter Four**

"A splash would do, yeah. Thank you again!"

The dark-skinned companion left with a nod and a small smile on her face. She had had quite a lot of time to get acquainted with the ship's ways of showing her what she did and did not like. This time, the kitchen door has mysteriously disappeared. _Some alone-time for the Doctor and Rose?_ To show the sentient ship she had understood, the girl slowed down her pace, looking around her curiously. Sooner or later, she would come up to the very familiar door. As for now, while walking, she could spare some thoughts about the changed situation.

Martha could not help it. This young woman was almost always smiling, not once showing any sign of disapproval or discontentment… Maybe this was what had made the Doctor fall for the fair-haired woman… He might not word it openly, but Martha wasn't blind. All this hugging, touching? The looks he kept giving her? He was fooling no-one. Fine, perhaps the Time Lord _was_ this bad in understanding his own feelings. As for Rose – she must have known exactly what she was doing… Not that she was doing anything exceptional in particular. Less than that – she seemed to talk him out of anything related to giving away his feelings!

This required they had a proper girl-to-girl conversation… Perhaps the blonde did not love him back? Perhaps the Doctor was like a brother to her? After all, they seemed to understand each other from the smallest of gestures…

The TARDIS buzz did not change in any way to either approve or negate her guesses. The kitchen was still nowhere to be seen. Martha has but sighed.

* * *

Almost as soon as the other companion left them, the Doctor found himself by her side again. "Rose. Does this happen often?"

"What- ah, the headaches… Almost always, whenever I perform the jump. Luckily, they always tend to have something similar to aspirin to make the pain more bearable."

"You mean, to take it away?"

Rose shrugged. "If I'm lucky…"

The Time Lord stared at her, suddenly startled. "What do you mean?"

"Depending on various things Jack has failed to explain to me properly – it could be he was not fully certain about them himself… the aspirin could or could _not_ have the desired effect on me," she shrugged. Seeing the expression on the alien's face, Rose hurried to fix the situation. "Just until I'm recognised as a part of this universe," she smirked at him reassuringly.

"Recognised by whom?" the Doctor eyed her incredulously. All of a sudden, he remembered Rose Tyler was _not_ supposed to be a part of this universe. Of course, if needed, these things could always be evaded by a thing as simple as a name-change.

"By the universe? By some kind of upper forces? I'm sorry, Doctor, I do not really know."

"Okay, Rose," he smiled at her. "This is of no importance now." She was there with him, looking just as enticing as ever. "What do you suggest we do until Martha returns with our tea?"

"Talk?"

"Don't be silly, Rose," he muttered into her ear, his words not without the smallest shade of possessiveness. "Knowing our luck, Martha should be here any moment… Just trust me this time, please?"

"Always," the girl held her breath, afraid the precious moment could be taken away from them any second now. "Even when you are not entirely certain about your actions."

"Rose, oh Rose... For once, I _know_ what I'm doing." With that, he crushed his lips onto hers, wrapping his eager arms around her possessively. Rose, never daring to close her eyes, could see the apologetic look in his. She wondered for the smallest part of the second about where that has come from…

After their time apart, were there many things to apologise for? Kissing her was certainly not one of these. If the approving look in her eyes was not clear enough, the girl was prepared to put her feelings into words, as unnecessary as it seemed. No matter the fact even the smallest hug they shared felt like a truer way to express what words couldn't. As soon as she opened her mouth to speak, his tongue entered hers hungrily. This was when every last reasonable thought was washed away by the not-really-unexpected need to feel what it meant to be _snogged_ by the other.

Just then, they heard the door being opened. Rose burst into laughter – the most beautiful music to the Time Lord's ears… But _this_ again? It was too much. Instead of pulling away, the Doctor drew her closer, aware of the sound of cups being put onto the table. The Gallifreyan could sense tension and discomfort from where the other companion was standing. The familiar exasperation was threatening to win over more pleasant feelings. "Just play along, please, Rose?" He pleaded quietly, his lips on her neck – pale and _so_ soft, just as the Time Lord had imagined…

"You will pay for this," her words were almost as quiet as summer breeze. The Londoner knew she would turn red in shame the moment she dared to face Martha. Why was she still in the room, anyway? Didn't she realise- oh. _Oh_. It was true – the Doctor knew _exactly_ what he was doing. And Rose would have been lying to herself if she did not admit this was the most exquisitely pleasant experience.

The more recent companion, feeling completely left out for the obvious reason, cleared her throat. "I really shouldn't be seeing this… Just don't forget to drink your tea before it gets cold," she shrugged, leaving. Subconsciously, she was almost thankful for this unpleasant discovery.

The blonde was glad the Time Lord did nothing – except for momentary breaths for air – to move away from her as soon as Martha had left.

"Tea?" He muttered after nineteen minutes and three seconds of what seemed – and has been – the beginning of something _else_. Something _better_ , for both of them.

"Mm…" Rose removed herself from his embrace unwillingly, somewhat pleased he seemed to share the sensation. "It would be cold by now, yes?"

"Slightly cooler, perhaps. Not _cold_. I'm sure the TARDIS has taken care of it."

The TARDIS. Heavens, the TARDIS! Rose _knew_ that the ship was the main reason why her headache had so mysteriously evaporated, gone at least for the time the Doctor and she were involved in pleasant discoveries.

While drinking their tea, neither of the two spoke. The fair-haired companion was suddenly overtaken by realisation the bothersome pain seemed to be returning. A less aggressive variation of it, but pain nonetheless.

The Doctor sensed it almost immediately. "Rose. Are you all right?"

"Not quite."

"Have you- all the time we were-"

"Nope!" She giggled. "The TARDIS must have done something to stop it-"

"Oh. I think she had stopped some painful nerve-centres from- Wait, Rose. You are not upset when the old girl enters your mind, but won't allow me to help you get rid of the pain… Why is that?" the Doctor sounded sad and confused.

"I'm sorry. I cannot. Not yet." It was breaking her heart to pieces. But Rose was too afraid of what the Doctor might find in her mind. What if this was no ordinary headache?

"But someday?" he looked hopeful.

"Yes. Someday soon…" Or so Rose hoped, controlling a heavy sigh from escaping her lips.

* * *

The next morning, Rose was feeling visibly worse. She was smiling, flirting – even more than usual - and doing all the usual things, yet the medicine seemed to have had no effect on her.

"I need to have my morning shower now," the girl stated simply.

The Doctor grabbed her by the hand. "Are you sure, Rose? I'm afraid of the things that might happen to you, and-"

"He most certainly is," Martha winked at the blonde. "You could go watch her, while I stay here and finish my breakfast, yeah?"

The Time Lord's eyes widened. "No! I can't. Absolutely… cannot."

"The TARDIS' repairs," Rose shrugged at Martha, being able to see the Doctor's distress at the suggestion. Helping him get out of situations like these has long become a part of her life.

"Yes! Yes! Indeed, she needs some urgent care-"

"So, could I go alone? I can find my way in the shower with my eyes closed, assuming you haven't done many changes-"

He hasn't, and she knew it.

"Oh, that… I might have changed something yesterday, while you were asleep-"

 _Whatever is up with him?_ "Okay… In that case, what am I supposed to do?"

His uneasiness was both amusing and unsettling, but the blonde only smiled.

The Doctor took a breath, suddenly coming up with a solution. "What about… what about Martha? I'm sure she could watch over you, while you-"

The dark-skinned companion shrugged hopelessly. If anything, this was going to bring a lot of tension to both of them. But it was impossible to say _no_ to him.

"It's not something I'm used to doing, but-" She met Rose's smile, which was clearly half-meant to calm down the Time Lord.

"You don't need to look at her. Just stay in the same room, in case something happens- Please, Martha?"

She nodded with an uncomfortable smile. Wasn't he supposed to ask for Rose's opinion about it first?

Rose rolled her eyes at the other girl. "Just his way of showing he cares," she explained with a smile.

"Are you okay with this?" The more recent companion eyed her searchingly.

"Let's say… I am used to his strange ideas. This is just a headache. Trust me, you don't want to hear about the ways he sometimes treats alien illnesses," Rose was still smiling, when they entered the bathroom. "You don't have to watch. Just keep me company, yeah?"

Martha smiled back at her. At least now she could possibly get some answers to some of the questions nagging her.

Happy she was standing with her back turned to her, Martha watched Rose remove her shirt- and gasped in shock. Her back was covered with several ugly scars – and a lot of bruises, some of them looking fairly new.

Rose sighed, familiar with the reaction. "It's nothing you haven't seen before... Just some bruises... I know it's not a pleasant sight. Don't look, if it disturbs you." Bruises, they would heal... But the scarring? What kind of life had she been living? Martha closed her eyes, choosing not to look at her until she was finished and fully dressed.

"I was expecting the Doctor would help me with getting rid of these," Rose muttered, suddenly ashamed, in a hurry to get out of the shower.

"I'm sure he would. Wait, he doesn't know?"

"No… I'd rather he didn't."

"How is he supposed to help you, if you don't tell him?"

" _Thank you_ for keeping me company, Martha," Rose sent her a smile. This time, it did not look natural.

* * *

Meanwhile, the Time Lord was doing anything but repairing the TARDIS. "This is _not_ supposed to be happening!" They have been jumping universes in the past – not a pleasant experience, of course, but nothing a nice cuppa in the TARDIS could not fix…

Of course, Rose did _not_ have - the Doctor was suddenly overtaken with the startling realisation - she'd had _nothing_ to help her adjust, not a person other than Captain Jack to accompany her, and the latter was but a human…

"Oh, Rose," he muttered her name, his eyes looking for her instinctively. She needed to be with him, at all times. Especially now that he believed to have understood the gravity of the situation. This time, no ordinary human could help her. Not even Martha. And the blonde companion was against his helping her. _Why?_

Instead of the blonde, Martha appeared, looking concerned. "I think you should go look after her, Doctor."

"Of course. How is she?"

"Go to her. Right now."


	5. Chapter 5

**Previously…**

_Instead of the blonde, Martha appeared, looking concerned. "I think you should go look after her, Doctor."_

" _Of course. How is she?"_

" _Go to her. Right now."_

* * *

**Love and Medicine: Chapter Five**

The Doctor wasted no time. "Where is she?"

Martha shrugged. " _You_ should know. I have known her for what? Two days?"

He glared at her. The woman seemed unusually tense, which could only mean one thing – trouble.

"Something is wrong. Something is wrong with Rose." It was not a question.

The dark-skinned companion averted her eyes. She knew she had no right to give away what was supposed to remain a secret between Rose and her, no matter how much she abhorred the idea of not letting him know. There _had_ to be a safe way of implying it somehow…

"I… er… I don't know what you're talking about."

The Doctor grabbed Martha by the shoulders fiercely, not noticing her face was awry with pain at his firm touch.

"How _bad_ is it?" his voice, both strangely soft and terrifyingly piercing, has made the companion shudder.

"I don't-"

He should have known Rose would ask of Martha not to tell him anything. This alone was a very good reason for the Doctor to believe at least some of his guesses had to be right.

"Answer the question, Martha."

"What-"

"How bad is it?"

"I don't know what you're-"

"Fine," the Doctor loosened the grip, almost allowing Martha lose her balance completely. "Perhaps I should be clearer. We- Rose and I, we have no other choice, Martha.

"What do you mean?"

"There is no Rose Tyler in this universe," he spoke, not looking at her. "There mustn't be. Her- her body is bound to begin deteriorating any time now... if I don't think of something. She tells me nothing, and I am left imagining all sorts of terrible things that could-"

Martha's empty look spoke volumes, and he swallowed. "Too late, am I?"

The dark-skinned companion sighed, unable to ignore the badly-hidden dread in his eyes. "Go to her; I've told you once already, Doctor. If there's anyone who can help her, it's you!"

"Yes…"

Martha tried her best not to roll her eyes. Rose had been nowhere as startled as the Time Lord before her.

"Maybe a name-change would do the trick?" It took a minute for the companion to realise he was asking for her opinion.

"Yes! You could even marry her, _John_."

This… this was something much too _domestic_. He grimaced, pushing the very reasonable suggestion away from his mind for now. Martha was glad Rose was not there to see it. The Doctor sighed heavily the next moment, feeling the TARDIS almost physically urging him to leave. "Are you sure, though? Have you, or have you not seen anything unusual on her body? Any signs of deterioration?" _Already?_

Martha's eyes widened. This was as good a confirmation as any.

He bit his cheek, a desperate expression on his face. "How. bad. is. it?"

A moment later, the Doctor shook his head, as if negating his words. There was no time to waste on trivialities. It was his duty to keep her safe. "Where is she? Where's Rose?"

"I don't know. In her chamber, perhaps."

"Perhaps," the Time Lord echoed, before letting out a heavy breath and leaving without a word. Martha was supposed to keep an eye on her! The TARDIS, sensing his unease, led him straight to Rose, who happened to be in the library, her eyes forlornly watching at everything and nothing. She could not be completely sure about the other companion's ability to keep secrets, not when the girl had seemed so worried…

Rose bit away her wish to sigh, recognising the sound of the Doctor's steps.

"Rose," he addressed her uncertainly.

"Yes, Doctor?"

"Do you realise," he whispered, wrapping his arms around her without an explanation, - "how much your silence is worrying me?"

She held her breath.

"A headache… it can be cured easily. But headaches are not the only problem, are they?"

"I don't understand," Rose muttered. Could it be Martha had indeed told him of-

"Rose... If you're worried about- she'd said nothing to me." _Nothing you might wish to hide from me, for whatever reason._

The companion knew this was leading somewhere. Somewhere bad. The headache was not helping.

"There is just this thing. You are not a part of this universe any more."

"So?"

"So… It is slowly deleting you off the surface of this reality."

The companion's voice broke. "You mean-"

He nodded, his breath hitching.

"All in vain, then?" she was suddenly aware of her foreseeable future.

"Not exactly, love."

_Love!_

"I can perform some jiggery-pokery for you. Name change is the easiest way. What about Dorothy? Dorothy Tyler?"

Rose was watching him curiously. "As in _The Wizard of Oz_?"

"Erm… that, too. But I once had a companion whose real name was Dorothy. She was-"

"Pretty?"

"She was _sixteen_ ," he rolled his eyes. "A real fighter. Hated the name, though. Anyway… The point is-"

"I must change my name. I get it," she assured him. Maybe Martha hadn't told him anything. But this meant _nothing_ now, did it? The girl could feel sheer dread overtaking her in less than a second.

"You share a connection with the TARDIS, Rose. This is what has saved you up to this point, but-"

"But?"

"The TARDIS can't protect you forever, Rose."

The ship let out a collection of untranslatable noises. "You really cannot, old girl."

The blonde turned her eyes upwards, feeling uninvited tears of pain, dread and anger were about to begin running down her cheeks any second now. This felt close to the limit of her pretending-abilities already. "You should know, I have come here to stay. Not to be kicked out like a-"

The Doctor blinked. "No! No! You don't understand," he hurried to speak. "With a different name, you won't be considered a threat to your home universe any more."

"Which means?"

"Jumping universes – rather frequently, knowing the number – has not only weakened your health, Rose. It has saved you from deteriorating to your death unnaturally quickly!"

"You mean, the multiverse could not catch up with me?" Rose spoke sarcastically.

"Precisely," he grinned, pulling her closer to himself, yet without an inkling of brutality.

The companion smiled at him sadly. "Yay, I suppose? But now that I am stuck in this place, the process will quicken once again. Right?"

She was not denying it. This was both relieving and terrifying. "Not if you change your identity, Rose."

"What will happen then?"

"You will be safe, my Rose."

The Tyler girl closed her eyes, unable to face his piercing look. However, she did not back away from his embrace, even though she knew all he needed to be fully assured of his fears was place his arm just a tiny bit lower. The relatively thin fabric of her tee-shirt – putting on a sweater was out of the question now - would disclose her unpleasant secret at once.

The question remained – how much he _did_ know…

The Time Lord cleared his throat, watching the girl with concern in his eyes. His words ended up being unintentionally cold and scientific. "Is your headache stable, or is it steadily becoming worse?"

Rose turned her eyes upwards, not answering openly, whispering instead. "Will it _ever_ stop, d'you reckon?"

 _Worse_ , then. Was she not listening to him?

"You could stay with me," he spoke softly, receiving a small smile from her. A smile, accompanied by silence.

Changing names suddenly sounded appealing. Remaining in this universe was a necessity, now. Both for her and for him. There was absolutely no way the Doctor would risk Rose's life ever again.

"Before we proceed-" This had to be taken care of, and as soon as possible. The Gallifreyan was determined to stop whatever was hurting her. It had to be done even if the companion objected to it, he realised. _Someday soon_ , hadn't she said? What about _today_?

"I hope you realise the change of name requires a believable background story?"

The companion shrugged. "We need to actually think of a name, first. And I am _not_ changing my name to _Dorothy_ , thank you very much," she sighed. "Besides, I'm rather fond of my given name," she said dreamily. "Nice to meet you, Rose," she giggled at the approving grin on his face.

"Gwen? Ann? Jane?" he was trying to think of some short names.

"Now, now. Leave Sarah Jane alone," she giggled. "I can't think of anything, either." Rose knew she would have to accept one of his suggestions, eventually, as it seemed only the fact the Doctor was holding her in his arms was keeping her pain from intensifying. She knew making important decisions were out of the question for her in this pitiful state.

* * *

"I have been wondering about these-" the alien cleared his throat after several long minutes, gesturing towards a strangely familiar pile of clothes that seemed to have not been present there twenty minutes ago.

"I think these are yours, Rose." The Doctor waved the shirt and sweater she had been wearing the day she arrived at her. She could see marks of dried blood on them.

The girl's hazel eyes widened, and she tried hard to find the right words. This was not supposed to happen. The TARDIS can't have done this for her! Not when she had entrusted the garments to the trustworthy vessel. Clearly, the ship felt like intervening. "I just- I- I hadn't… I mean, of course, I have been wearing these exact clothes yesterday, but-" Rose had been certain the bruises – particularly the recent ones – had closed up. Of course, with Martha not saying very much about the matter, it could be one or two of these bothersome injuries have somehow opened up again-

She sighed heavily. "Don't panic, love." The Doctor began soothing her. "I know it is not like you to leave dirty clothes on the floor. Least of all in my room," he giggled.

Rose gave a start. "I have never even-"

The Time Lord smirked at her, before becoming serious. This was true, Rose had never been in his room. This absolutely had to be fixed, now they-

"Obviously not." _Not yet._ The Doctor shrugged, never doubting the _journey_ of the companion's clothes was the old girl's attempt to be helpful. He grimaced at her _creative_ way of letting him know what he could have guessed by himself, the pain on Rose's face a very good indication.

"I take it you don't feel like showing me your back? Rose? I might heal at least some of the injuries, you know."

"I know. But- but-" her self-control faltered dangerously. "What if the name-change doesn't help, what if it's too late for me?"

He took her face in his hands, his expression void of doubt. "It isn't."

It could not be too late. Not for them.

The Doctor nodded at the companion encouragingly. "This- the name-change _always_ works. It is a very important step to take, my darling Rose."

The fair-haired human giggled bitterly. "Shouldn't you stop using my name, then? Help me to get used to another one?"

"Rose. Rose. Rose," his lips formed a loving smile _._ "I'm afraid I'm just as fond of this name as you are."

She eyed him searchingly, suddenly terrified. "Does this mean what I think it means?"

"Not quite. Er- I don't do this. Have never-"

For a moment, he seemed completely lost.

"Yes?"

"You don't actually need to change your given name, as long as your last name is different."

Rose gasped. "Do you know how many different names are there to choose from? It's almost worse than-"

The Doctor caught her look, a soft smile enlightening his features, as he watched the understanding hit her.


	6. Chapter 6

**Previously…**

" _You don't actually need to change your given name, as long as your last name is different."_

_Rose gasped. "Do you know how many different names are there to choose from? It's almost worse than-"_

_The Doctor caught her look, a soft smile enlightening his features, as he watched the understanding hit her._

* * *

**Love and Medicine: Chapter Six**

The human was watching him, squinting her eyes, still incredulous. "Is this a-"

The Doctor was looking at her, his eyes soft and warm. "If we keep to human terminology… This is exactly what I've-" She said nothing, stunned.

The alien eyed her meaningfully. "In case I have failed to- It's a proposal. As in-"

As in _marry me?_ kind of proposal… She _knew._

Rose was approaching him cautiously. "Are you- are you sure about this? Isn't it against your understanding of life? I think you should think about it more thoroughly-" the younger Tyler – _still_ – knew taking such a step was going to change _everything_. She was afraid this was a responsibility he – perhaps even she – was not ready for. "If you're only doing this as an attempt to save me-" This _had_ to be the case.

The Doctor shook his head slightly. "Can't you see? I _want_ this. Will always want this, and no-one else but you, Rose." I thought we have spent enough time apart to realise just how important we are to one another," the Time Lord breathed out, his eyes fixed on her.

The blonde inhaled, her lips forming an uncertain smile at last. "You really… _really_ want this? I thought-" her voice, unlike the pounding in her head, was almost inaudible.

She was thankful the Doctor – clearly unable to take the sight of Rose in pain any longer - approached her without a sound, forcing an encouraging smile onto his lips.

"It will be all right," he muttered softly. "You'll be as right as rain again, I swear," he spoke hurriedly, seemingly trying to assure both the companion and himself. The woman could see the Time Lord through, but awarded him with a heartfelt smile. "I hope so."

" _Know_ so, love."

"I've been thinking... Shouldn't we kiss now?"

The Doctor's smile turned into a wide grin. This was just like Rose – her words – no, even her _voice_ seemed to make everything seem much less complicated… even when _she_ was the one in trouble.

"We most definitely should, Rose," he muttered, before allowing his lips touch hers gingerly. "But shouldn't your injuries be attended to first?"

Rose sighed, not denying what the TARDIS had implicitly shown him earlier. "It's going to be a very long and tiresome process for you, Doctor. I'm sure we should- could warn Martha first, so she wouldn't begin to panic about us being gone for hours…"

"Days, if necessary," he corrected her.  "I am not letting you spend a day more in all this sorrow. We need to have your name officially changed as soon as possible." It took Rose a few moments to realise what he was talking about. She let out a heavy breath.

"Which is going to take… how long, exactly?"

The Doctor saw sincere panic in her eyes. "Hours, if we manage to catch the guy who owes me a favour in his working place," he smiled at the girl assuringly. "A chapel in Vegas. Las Vegas," he clarified.

Rose gulped. Something had to be done, and soon. She could feel the pain intensifying at a terrifying rate. "What if we don't manage to find him?"

"There are other places. Other planets, other times, even. But a signed document is a document everywhere."

"I don't think applying a perception filter to official documents is a good idea," the blonde spoke with a small incredulous smile.

"I'm not talking about falsifying anything. Are you doubting me, Rose?"

The young woman but shook her head. He took her hand. "First things first," the Doctor smiled at her encouragingly, touching her shoulder tentatively. "May I see? I could at least numb some of the pain, be it temporarily for now, until-"

The girl saw no reason to object to his offer. Not if it could make her feel at least a bit better, for however short a while. "Yes. Okay. But we're not exactly… alone," Rose reminded him quietly, meaning Martha.

Taking out his sonic, the Doctor locked the door. "We're not officially _betrothed_ , either," he shrugged with a smirk.

"Should we be?"

"No time," he sighed thoughtfully.

"No time," her voice echoed his, as a tense almost-smile appeared on her face. "I must warn you, it's-"

"It can't be too bad." The blonde shrugged at his words, remembering the reaction of the other companion, but did not object to his cool hands working on unbuttoning her blouse - the one the TARDIS had given her instead of the uncomfortably light tee-shirt - as quickly as his Time Lord physiology allowed him. It could not be quick enough.

"This might hurt," he warned, looking over her almost bare body without showing the tiniest bit of shock or disgust. Rose was thankful for that, the situation being uncomfortable as it was.

"Hurt _more_ than it already does?" the companion grimaced theatrically.

"It's likely," he admitted unwillingly. "But the good thing is I can stop the pain from spreading further." The Doctor was regretting his words the moment he saw the dread on Rose's face. "Of course, I could try and _avoid_ intensifying your pain as much as possible in the short time we can spend on things other than getting you a different identity. Well… a different name. Same thing." _Not exactly._ "Is this okay?"

"Do whatever you have to do," the Londoner muttered, not looking at him. "Just hurry up," she begged. "It's getting cold."

The Time Lord swallowed a sigh. Being cold was not a problem. It was the pain she was feeling, even if Rose was trying to hide it as much as she could. The wounds, the bruises… both fresh and not, both on her back and her front – the universe was not picky, and certainly not kind towards intruders. Even if this _was_ her home universe, its logic was unquestionable. The Doctor growled inwardly. _His_ Rose deserved none of this. At least the scars were not a pressing problem for the moment.

The time was ticking… How long would Rose Marion _Tyler_ have had left to live? A week? Perhaps two? Not _bloody_ likely. The alien did not want to waste a moment more than was necessary – which included allowing the TARDIS pick Rose a gown for this occasion. His cheeky old girl was not to be disobeyed, not on things like this… Not on _time_ like this.

The Doctor was doing his best, or as much of _best_ as he could give Rose, each thankful look or a nod from the companion meaning he was on the right track.

In what seemed like an eternity for both of them, he replaced the sonic into his pocket and smiled. "There… How are you feeling, Rose?"

"Better," she smiled back at him softly. The pain, particularly the headache, was not gone… Merely lulled, yet this was more than what the fair woman was expecting, and she was glad. For the time being. "You've said the effect won't last," she spoke quietly, a silent question in her eyes.

"It will stop completely the moment we're- the moment you're not a Tyler any more," he assured.

"Yeah?"

"Yes," the Doctor's eyes were shining with admiration, as he was helping her back into her clothes without much objection, not after her sudden outbreak, one he had to admit to have missed. _'Who do you take me for? A stripper? And it's still bloody cold!'_

He kissed her afterwards. Only briefly, but it was enough to make her unbelievably happy. Just until she remembered…

"What about the headache?" _The one kind of pain least likely to be gone…_

"It will undoubtedly cease the moment you trust me enough to allow me take care of it," he said. "And even if you don't- well… if the name-change goes well, which it _will_ \- the throbbing in your head should dull eventually."

"Dull, as in be gone?" she was hopeful.

"As in become less pronounced," he admitted sadly.

"Why? Am I to live with this all my life?"

"We should leave this conversation for some other time," he said, planting a kiss on her nose.

Rose giggled, even if not entirely happy with his evasive reply. "As long as it's soon, yes?"

"Yes. Would hurrying things up a bit worry you, _love_?"

"Not at all."

The Doctor grinned at her. "Very good. _Molto bene_. Should we be going?"

Rose shook her head slightly. "No, wait. I think we should tell Martha... she deserves to know, yes?" Leaving the dark-skinned girl out of important things felt wrong. Sure, they did not know each other well. Sure, Martha's reaction in seeing her body was questionable for a doctor-to-be… But she was good. She was kind. She was understanding.

"You're right, my Rose. She does," he smiled.

"But where is she?"

The ship did not reply in any way, but it was not necessary. The Doctor grew anxious. "We must do it now. Must hurry. You still need to see what the TARDIS has chosen for you," he muttered.

"What about Martha?"

"She'll be here any moment now. Do you know why?"

"Because you're about to kiss me?" Rose was not making guesses. She _knew_.

"Mm," the Time Lord was not wasting time. Snogging your almost-bride breathless was _never_ a waste of time. Necessary, too.

"Who's saying my name?" an amused smile on Martha's face did not last. Not because _they_ were snogging _again_. Not because she happened to come up on them much too often. Not _only_ because of it, at least.

The Doctor and Rose broke apart from each other the next second after having heard Martha's chirping. "Come in. Close the door. There isn't time," the Doctor spoke in a hurry.

Martha was by Rose's side the next moment. "How are you?" she asked, glad to see the blonde seemed much more at ease. No longer in pain, perhaps?

The Doctor shook his head, incredulous. _Humans_. "You two go change. Right away. See?" He motioned towards the wardrobe room, the door to which was now right before their eyes. "The TARDIS is as much in a hurry as we are," the Time Lord and his pink and yellow human exchanged delighted grins.

"I'm off," the Doctor nodded at the women. "Take your time," he said, eyeing them meaningfully and leaving.

"What's up with him?" Martha wondered.

"He'll need to change something more than a jumper today," Rose smirked at her, forgetting the other companion had no idea what the previous regeneration of the Doctor was like. "Never mind. Look, she'd chosen a dress for you too!" the blonde was almost jumping with excitement.

"A black one. Very original. Thanks," Martha rolled her eyes.

"Come, now. It's very elegant," Rose assured her. "Fits any time. Any place." She doubted the TARDIS would land them anywhere close the intended destination - wherever that was...

The more recent companion but stared at the bright red gown meant for Rose to wear.

"A tradition," the fair girl explained, not expanding upon it.

* * *


	7. Chapter 7

**Previously…**

_The more recent companion but stared at the bright red gown meant for Rose to wear. "A tradition," she explained, not expanding upon it._

* * *

**Love and Medicine: Chapter Seven**

It took her no time to dress up. Perhaps with a bit of help from the TARDIS, too. Rose's back was covered exactly from the point the visibly injured parts were risking to show. Which meant _a lot_ of coverage.

Naturally, the blonde was not going to disagree with the ever-so-helpful vessel. The gown, albeit its cut was unusual, was _gorgeous_. Martha could not help but stared, her mouth slightly agape.

"Interesting, wouldn't you say?" Rose threw a momentary glance at her reflection in the mirror, soon leaning down to put on the black stilettos the TARDIS offered her to accompany the dress.

"Red Queen, of sorts," Martha commented, having put on the elegant black gown offered to her first. She had to admit the ship did a great job in having provided her with such an exquisite garment. Lovely, but nowhere as dazzling as Rose's.

The more recent companion quietly watched at Rose struggling to put her hair up, then giving up and abandoning the idea. While she would have had no difficulties in doing it had the time not been pressing – where was the Doctor, anyway? – her hands seemed to be reluctant to help her at that moment. Maybe because of the headache – dulled, but still present… She exhaled, frustrated.

Martha could not simply stand there. "Would you like me to help you?" she asked the blonde softly.

"Please… just this once, yeah?" Rose blushed, uncomfortable. Being incapable of doing something this simple by herself was flustering her, but Martha only smiled at her, glad the TARDIS had provided her with everything she might need to make Rose look like a queen.

The fair-haired girl hummed appreciatively at her reflection in the mirror, once the dark-haired companion seemed content with her work.

"Is this okay?" she asked, unsure.

"This is absolutely marvellous, Martha! And to think I had only asked you to help me with my hair…"

"The TARDIS had pretty much done the job for me, Rose. Thank her, not me!"

"Thanks to both of you, then," the Tyler girl smiled softly. "By the way, don't you think you should put your hair up, too? I'm sure you'd look amazing in that hairdo!" Rose winked at her.

"You think? Wouldn't it seem too official?"

"That's the general idea," Rose's lips curled into a smile, having met doubt in the other girl's eyes. "If all else fails – we'll look beautiful when the time comes," she muttered.

"Sorry? I didn't catch you. Is there something wrong with how I applied the products? Are you allergic to something?" Martha spoke hurriedly, sincere worry colouring her features. She might have got too carried away with this.

"No! No, everything's fine, Martha."

The dark-skinned companion thought differently, her medical education once again kicking in. "Does something hurt? The shoes are uncomfortable, perhaps?"

"Not at all." Rose thought for another second and finished conspiratorially. "Might have to take them off if we find ourselves in a run-or-die situation again, though," she smirked.

"Yeah," she agreed with a shrug. The blonde seemed distracted, as if waiting for something.

Indeed, she was waiting, unwillingly counting the passing seconds. Seconds, minutes, hours left to live. Everything seemed so simple with the Doctor by her side… but he was not there with them yet. Rose sighed heavily.

As if on cue, the Doctor entered the room the next moment. _As if you did not know the dread is eating me from the inside_ , the blonde thought bitterly, smiling at the Time Lord anyway.

"We have landed!" he informed the women excitedly. Having seen Martha first, he nodded in approval, however absentmindedly. "Where are we?" the dark-skinned companion asked with genuine interest.

"Not where we have planned to go," he smiled sadly at no-one, missing the look Rose gave him.

"No idea where we are exactly yet," he muttered to himself, remembering time was waiting for no-one.

"But! We _are_ getting married today! Need to fix something! Back in a tick!" The Doctor was gone as soon as he arrived. It was likely he had decided to change, or something. Rose seemed content at his excitement. Several minutes void of worry won.

"Yeah?" Rose's wide grin suddenly seemed to have enlightened the whole room. She seemed to have acquired some new excitement at his words. Enough to begin joking about it.

"Now that you know…" She broke in quiet giggles. "Are you sure about the colour, Martha? Black, in a wedding?"

Martha Jones was glad to have the Rose she'd known back. _Red_ , in a wedding?" she countered with a smile.

"Red, on the bride? Preposterous!" Rose smirked at her.

Martha rolled her eyes. The Doctor _had_ decided to follow her suggestion, after all. Which meant...

She was not someone to allow innocent people die. "We should get going. Right now."

"Okay." Rose was still grinning. "Let's just wait for him?"

Martha exhaled. Of course, they needed to wait for him. But she was going to make use of the time.

"How is the pain, Rose?"

"Passable," she assured her with a smile. _So far._

"Let's get going?" Martha tried again. Rose made a desperate gesture. She _was_ going to wait.

"Sure, but are you sure about the dress? It's _red_!"

"Yep," Rose giggled. "That's how the Gallifreyan tradition goes, as far as I know," she smiled, leaving Martha no choice but to take it as it was.

The Doctor was with them within minutes, apparently wearing the same clothes from before.

"Did not want to waste time," he said, placing a sticker-resembling tiny thing on his back. In a moment, he was wearing something much more suitable for a wedding. A black suit. Even seeing him in this made Rose think he was being extravagant… Unbelievably handsome, though. And what had he done to his hair? The blonde reminded herself to return his incredible hair to the adorable disarray she was used to.

"What was this? Magic?" Martha's eyes widened.

"No such thing as magic," the Doctor reminded her. "Perception filter," he nodded at his most recent companion.

Then, he finally let go of his pointless attempt to keep to human traditions and not see the bride until the wedding and fixed his hungry eyes on his bride-to-be. Whoever had come up with such a stupid idea had to be really, really-

_Humans._

"Rose..." he gasped. She was _perfect_. "Turn around?"

"Is something wrong?" She met his admiring eyes. His eyes were running through every bit the gown has highlighted. Every part it hasn't.

"No," he breathed out, his throat dry. "Nothing is. Rose- You look lovely. No time to show you just _how_ lovely, though."

Martha breathed out. "I can leave, if you need some alone time or..."

"No need," the Doctor assured her. There should be a little over three hours left until your pain returns. We should have plenty of time." "Do you know where he's taking you?" Martha muttered, curious.

Rose muttered back. "I am afraid to make a guess. Knowing the Doctor- somewhere _interesting_."

Martha Jones backed away a doubtful grimace. "To heal you?"

"Healing will come _afterwards_ , he said," Rose muttered, yet her eyes were sparkling with expectation.

 _Sure. The wedding_. Martha smiled softly. "Ah. You are going through some ritual, like the magical ones ancient tribes are said to perform still?"

The Doctor could not keep quiet any longer. "In a way, Martha Jones. You're coming with us?"

"Yes. Have no choice, do I?"

" _Molto bene_." He grinned. "Can you run?"

 _Told you_ , Rose mouthed to Martha, kicking the stilettos off. "Always," she smirked.


	8. Chapter 8

**Previously…**

_"Can you run?"_

_Told you_ _, Rose mouthed to Martha, kicking the stilettos off. "Always," she smirked._

* * *

**Love and Medicine: Chapter Eight**

"Wait! What about your feet? Are you ready for it? _Really_?" Martha was watching Rose in horror.

Rose shrugged. "This is hardly the first time for us, so…"

Not content with the girl's somewhat evasive answer, the dark-skinned companion glared at the Doctor instead.

"Do you at least realise what you're doing, Doctor? I can justify Rose – she is not well and has every right to make questionable decisions. But you?"

"Questionable decisions? That's just the way it is for us, right, Rose?"

"Yeah," she half-smiled, but said nothing else. Panic was slowly building up in her mind.

"You don't know where we are, is this it?" Martha grimaced.

"I can give you the exact coordinates," he tried to assure her. "We are still on Earth, that much is for certain," he murmured. "It's just that I can't identify the exact place."

Rose's voice broke. Under any other circumstances, she would have laughed. This, however… "No?"

"I am sure everything's-"

Martha rolled her eyes at the Time Lord, picking Rose's shoes up. If all went according to plan, Rose would need them. "Sometimes I doubt you _can_ make reasonable decisions when we really need them, Doctor."

"Trust me," he pleaded, looking at Rose. "I know what I'm doing!"

The girl nodded. "Try another planet, perhaps? If Vegas doesn't work out?"

There was just this thing… They did not have much time. More than enough places to choose from… barely enough time to fill the required papers, even when hoping for the best. "It will be fine, Rose."

"Fine how? Fine when?" Martha glared at the Doctor. "Even if your wife-to-be were more than human – even if she were not in constant dread you might not fix everything in time-"

"We _are_ in Las Vegas," he spoke, realisation hitting him. Just several centuries too early!"

Rose blanched. "And you cannot-"

This was no game. No time to make one more such mistake. "Watch and learn, ladies!" He hurried back to the ship, with the two women in tow. Having typed in the complicated coordinates without as much as a second thought, he waited for the ship to materialise, a grin on his face.

"Ladies first!"

Rose grabbed Martha's hand without thinking.

"It will be fine!" Martha assured her, getting a thankful look from the other girl in return when she's given her the high-heeled shoes back with a smirk.

"Told you," the Doctor looked around knowingly, having waited until Rose was wearing her shoes again. Merely taking a step in those seemed to have required unbelievable gymnastic skills – ones he knew Rose possessed.

* * *

 

This time, they were at the exact time and place they needed to be. Just months after he had saved someone very dear to the guy who had promised him help whenever he needed it. If anything, he was not expecting it to happen so soon. But there he was! With _two_ female friends, at that!

"John! I mean, Doctor! To whom do I own the favour? Or, more likely, who's the lucky one?"

He took Rose's hand from Martha's. "This is Rose. Could we get straight to business, please?"

"Of course. You have saved my wife once. I am here to save yours! Just a moment. John Smith marries Rose who?"

"Could we avoid this part?"

"No, John. It's a part of the procedure. I have skipped more parts with hurrying this than is allowed already!"

"Is her last name all you need?" Martha was curious.

"In this particular case, yes. That… and their signatures."

The dark-skinned woman was determined to help, especially seeing the undecipherable emotion in Rose's eyes.

Martha remembered she was often praised for exceptional memory during her studies. There had to be a reason. "I believe it's Tyler, sir. Rose Tyler. I can't see why-"

Rose gasped, a sudden wave of a cutting pain on her back striking her. _Another scar_ , her mind reminded her. They were no longer under the protection of the TARDIS. Every time someone uttered her name in a universe that wasn't hers (now including the one that _was_ ), for whichever reason, a new scar was sure to appear on her body. She was catching her breath, fighting the momentary pain away.

"Doctor," Rose muttered, "Tell them to never say my full name again. _This_ name. Never." Every time was shorter than the other... but the pain was getting more and more devastating. _Two more times, and I will die before we even manage to get married._

He stared at her, terrified. "Do you mean it's starting already, love?" He could not lose her. Not so soon. Not like this.

"Just don't allow them say my-"

The guy was pleased. "All's settled, then! John Smith and Rose Tyler, place your signa-"

Rose growled in intolerable pain then, grabbing her back by reflex, although she knew a scar was never going to cause her any kind of pain again after this. "Don't- don't say that- name ever again. _Please_!"

The curious man merely shrugged. "I suppose 'Rose Smith' is your name of preference, then? No need of your maiden name?"

"No need," Rose affirmed.

"As you wish. But surely you know there are cultures where they prefer using longer names?"

"My middle name will do for that. Could we please get on with this?"

Both Martha and the Doctor were following the scene quietly, the latter only letting go of Rose's hand when they needed to sign the document. A sigh of relief was all the girl could allow herself while still seen by so many inquiring eyes… that, and a smile.

"Could you keep this secret?"

"Trouble?" the man averted his eyes. This 'Doctor' was no exception among many others wanting to get married in secret for one reason or other, but he did not question further.

"You have no idea."

"Fine. I'll still need to keep a copy of this with me, you know. But the original document is yours!"

Martha spoke then, her excitement enlightening the mood at once. "Sure! Can we go already?"

"Of course," having helped them in this ordinary procedure, the man seemed relieved to see the strange company leave. "Just keep an eye on your Rose. She doesn't look well."

Rose rolled her eyes and clung to her Time Lord without sparing another look at the guy.

She spoke only when the TARDIS was safely travelling in the vortex. "What now?"

Martha threw a glance at the girl. "You know, you look somehow different, Rose!"

The Doctor smiled at her instead, visibly knowing more than Martha did.

"My love. It's over. New name, new life, new future is waiting for us!"

Rose breathed out. "Could I have a moment alone with the Doctor, Martha?"

The dark-skinned companion only winked at them suggestively and left. This most certainly had nothing to do with her. The thought of finding herself a complicated read has crossed her mind anew.

* * *

Finally alone with the Time Lord, Rose could not make herself look at him, suddenly remembering the way it all began. "You have done _this_ for me. Why?"

"You know why," he repeated the words Rose had said before. "My darling. Is it very unacceptable of me to ask-"

For a kiss? For a hug? "No." He was her husband, after all.

"I'd like you to undress for me."

 _What?_ "It's not even dark outside yet," she grimaced. Of course, he could have had his reasons-

The Doctor giggled bitterly. "I want you to be mine, of course I do. But shouldn't we get your injuries fixed properly first, _wife_?"

Rose blushed, ashamed. "Yes. Yes."

He smirked. "Thought so. How's your headache? Still don't want me to-"

"I _do_ want it. Just-"

"Still too soon, love? You know there is no way for you to hide it from me forever. Not when we're officially married, Mrs Smith!"

"I know. But it terrifies me," Rose bit her lip.

She _seemed_ terrified… and she really, really shouldn't have been! Unless- What does, my Rose?"

"The thoughts in my head- they feel-" she broke into tears -. "I don't know what's happening to me! Don't understand- I-"

"Has this started _after_ the wedding?"

"I don't- don't know! Never thought of it before, with the- the pain going on, and-"

"Shh. All's well now, my love," he muttered to her. "I'm here now. Will stay with you."

* * *

Having made sure Rose was, in fact, asleep in his arms, the Doctor sighed heavily. This was not how this day should have ended. Having convinced himself entering Rose's fragile human mind without an explicit permission was a necessity for her own good, it was still a violation of privacy.

What he found in there was a surprise. A very basic, very human thing. _A lot_ of those things. The Doctor found himself in a corridor with walls made of mirrors.

 _Why, Doctor_? A version of Rose was now approaching him. One from her mind, he decided, daring to step closer.

_No. I need to know you mean her no harm. Invading my- her mind like this deserves to be punished._

The Doctor simply stood here, unsure about what the creature was. _How do_ I _know_ you _mean her no harm?_

_She's saved me once. Saved you. I am nothing but a part of her subconscious… but am here to protect her. Forever. From intruders like you as well, Doctor._

The Time Lord wondered if he should explain himself to the not-really-Rose at all. All _I wanted was to cure her! Rose is my life! And my wife, after all._

The voice in his head has suddenly changed in pitch. _Which gives you the right to enter my mind without permission?_

Rose! The expression on her face, the look of disillusion in her hazel eyes… Whatever the other almost-Rose creature was, this was the _real_ one. One he felt he needed to apologise to.

_I'm sorry, Rose! Do you want me to leave?_

She grimaced. _So you could put me to sleep and enter my mind so brutally again? Do you have any idea how many bruises such an entrance leaves in one's mind?_ He stared at her, not understanding.

 _Sorry!_ He could not think of anything else to say.

_Come, husband. You can just remove that damned headache now that you're in my mind._

The Doctor took Rose's hand. She looked like Rose. Smelt like Rose. Felt like Rose… _was_ Rose.

_What is this about, Rose?_

She understood. _The mirrors? In case of intruders_ , the girl smirked. _You are free to remove that bothersome pain now, by the way, Doctor._

_Will it be gone the moment you wake up?_

Rose's eyes widened in expectation at his soft touch. _Properly? Truly? I hope so._

The Doctor was prepared to believe in anything at this point. _Rose… are we in your dream? Fantasy?_

Rose giggled. _Why would I need protection from unwanted guests in my dreams? My fantasies about you do not include mirrors, either._

The Time Lord could not back away a smug grin, before finding the relatively tiny glowing green source of her pain, almost entirely gone by the time he got to it. The name-change must have helped immensely. He smiled, getting rid of every last trace of it in seconds. _There, love!_

 _Thank you!_ The Doctor could see the unexpected encounter has weakened both of them considerably. Entering the mind of another without having formed a bond first tended to have this effect, even if she was the love of his life. Even if they were officially husband and wife now.

Even if…

Even if the first question on his tongue after hours of rest was not a _how_ or a _why_ question. The one the Doctor gave her has caused Rose to blush furiously.

"What about those fantasies about me, Rose?"


	9. Chapter 9

**Previously…**

_Even if…_

_Even if the first question on his tongue after hours of rest was not a how or a why question. The one the Doctor gave her has caused Rose to blush furiously._

" _What about those fantasies about me, Rose?"_

* * *

**Love and Medicine: Chapter Nine**

Rose stared at him, appreciating the fact he had insisted they shared his room, even if neither she nor he took off any piece of clothing. The wedding day still continued. "'I'm not telling you _that_ , _husband_." He had failed to see the changes within her, right up to the last moment. The almost painful sensation of the Doctor reaching out for the secrets within her was also something to consider.

He seemed hurt. "Why?"

Weren't they _family_ now?

She sighed. "Don't I have the right to keep _something_ from you, Doctor?"

"Not if I am able to make some of your fantasies true, darling," his eyes sparkled. "Would I be?"

Rose's eyes widened, a wicked smirk on her face. "Someone has promised to help me get rid of these dreadful things on my body first," she reminded him. If she wanted to look – to _feel_ beautiful from head to toes – there was no time better than the present for that.

"Whenever you're ready," he smiled at her. _My love._

"I am ready _now_ ," she returned the smile. The quiet rest appeared to have restored some of her strength, at least. Way too little to make Rose feel like herself again, if she were being honest… The girl knew if the unexpected intrusion to her mind was but a one-time thing, the inner bruises would heal, eventually. But all she was asking for now was the removal of those visible bruises… and scars, yes.

The Doctor gave Rose a serious look. "Look at me, Rose. Don't turn your eyes away from me, whatever happens." He was unwilling to let her out of his sight, now more than ever. "I'm still afraid something might happen to you," the Doctor breathed, uncomfortable. "Just look at me."

That much, she was ready to do. "You should lock the door first," she smirked. "Martha does not deserve to see the atrocious sight again."

"No need for that," he objected. Being the reasonable woman Martha was, particularly after having come upon them more than once, she would not risk it so lightly.

"What if I choose to put some of my fantasies in motion, though?" Rose teased him.

This was enough for the Doctor to double-lock the door, but he did nothing to encourage her.

With her red dress on the floor, only her equally red undergarments still covering her skin, the Doctor began, a small smile never leaving his face. Rose never turned her eyes away, as instructed. If his gaze had eventually intensified, momentary shadows of worry appearing in his eyes… This was not a good enough reason to look away. The bride believed she could live with feeling his ever so tender touches on her flushed skin forever.

When the Doctor gave a swift nod and grinned at her, the companion realised she must have been on her feet for hours. Suddenly, all she wanted was for him to hold her.

"Please, could we just stay here for a while?" Rose asked. "I simply need to fully grasp the idea." They were married. She felt no physical pain. Not any more.

"Sure, my dear," he placed his lips on the top of her head.

"No, Doctor," she stopped him. "I need to fully grasp the idea you have _dared_ to try and enter my mind. _So soon after…_

"Is this _it_? Was this too much?" He looked at her, worry in his eyes.

"'T was unacceptable. Not painful, just-"

"But I _have_ helped you to have your pain removed, yeah?"

"Yes," she muttered, suddenly uncomfortable. Rose knew she would have had to wait for many years for the pain to die off naturally. "Have I thanked you for that?"

"You have," he assured her.

"But not properly," she licked her lips.

"Does thanking me properly include kissing?" The Doctor peered into her.

"Snogging, yeah."

He nodded appreciatively at her. "Something else?"

"Now that you've made me all healthy again? No, I don't think so, not now," Rose put her dress back on, just to prove her point.

The Doctor rolled his eyes at her. Of course, this was Rose. Every single thing she did had a reason, however trivial it might have been. This, however… it was neither trivial nor acceptable. Having entered her mind like this might have been the way of Time Lords, particularly ones as rebellious as he was… But Rose was, essentially, human. The variations and changes in her mind were still barely noticeable… To most. But her mind had _accepted_ him, however reluctantly. If this was because of the hurried marriage or because of the intervention of the TARDIS, the Doctor could not say.

"Why not, Rose?"

"Because it was not the right time. Because I don't remember having ever allowed you into my mind."

"Why? Do you still have something to hide from me, Rose?"

She sighed. "Not any more, I s'ppose. Ask your questions."

The Time Lord was feeling brave. "Could you please take off your dress once again?"

It was clear his request had nothing to do with fixing her up. "I can," she giggled, hurrying to remove the dress without question, grinning. "But wouldn't Martha-"

"Martha Jones is the last thing on my mind now," he looked her over searchingly, this time helping her to get the gown off again. "Better," he inhaled. "Much better."

She smirked. "What is the first thing on your mind, then?" Rose believed to have known the answer… And was right.

He nodded towards her. "Before my actions get a bit too intimate, Rose… Who was the woman I'd met in your mind first? An alter-ego of some sort?"

She grew serious. "My friend. _Your_ friend."

"She did not seem very friendly towards me," the Doctor objected.

"Sure thing. You shouldn't have invaded my mind like this, hadn't I told you I'd rather you waited?"

"Right. Sorry."

Rose smiled at him softly. "Ask for permission the next time. It had taken me a while to tame the Wolf within me. Might take some time for you, as well."

This was a lot of information. The Time Lord took several seconds to grasp it properly. "Wouldn't entering your mind like this again harm you, as it seems to have?"

"Find another way," the girl suggested, smiling.

"What do you mean?" The Doctor was puzzled… And he hated it.

"Something like," she was grinning now, "this," her lips found his… And, indeed, he imagined to have seen the very same place with mirrors just when the kiss intensified.

Rose backed away, her face flushed. _See?_

The Doctor was stunned by her attempt of reaching for him telepathically no less than by the brief passionate kiss and what it meant. The Londoner giggled. "This way, no harm would be done for me. Besides, it's-" _Incredible._

_Rose._

_Doctor?_

He stared at her. "But how-" How was any of this even possible? All of a sudden, all he wanted was take his Rose to the infirmary and see everything for himself.

 _Is this what you prefer, now that we're together, Doctor?_ She stared back at him, amused. "You don't imagine we have not been pulled through an emergency course of telepathic communication in Torchwood?"

_This sounds nothing like a quick emergency course, Rose._

_Bad Wolf? The TARDIS? Remember?_ She has always believed it was because of that she has acquired the telepathic skill. Not because of some fairly useless course in Torchwood. Rose knew all the basics anyway. Much more than that.

He sighed heavily. "Why haven't you used it before? Not once? Not even when we were alone together?" The Time Lord was confused.

 _I couldn't bear frightening you further. Not when you were aware of my_ situation _._ "And certainly not with Martha Jones nearby," she smirked, remembering. "She would not have understood."

The Doctor knew she was correct. _Rose, oh, Rose… How have you survived all of this?_

"When one travels with someone like you, nothing is impossible. When I no longer did – the impossible barely got harder to overcome," she smirked at him.

He grinned. "I'm so glad to have you by my side, you know that, Rose- Rose Smith," his grin widened. For one moment it seemed everything was just as it used to be… But at the same time, everything was different.

 _Does_ forever _still stand, Rose?_   He asked her all of a sudden.

She rolled her hazel eyes at him good-naturedly. "You know the answer to this just as well as I do, my Doctor."

 _Do I?_ The Time Lord looked at her challengingly, not once forgetting Rose was only clad in her underwear, the dress thrown aside just because of his request.

She seemed to have caught his wandering thought. _Really, Doctor. It's getting unpleasantly cool again. If you have had some other intention than gaping at me-_

The Gallifreyan smiled at her softly. "You might put it on… or not just yet," he gave her a mischievous look.

Rose shrugged, her eyes sparkling at the realisation. But she could not forget one simple thing. _Doctor- Martha's still-_

"Hello! Anyone there?" The familiar voice got them out of their expectations for something beautiful at once.

 _-on board,_ he finished, the hope of intimacy gone as soon as it appeared. Sending Martha away was not an option. Neither was locking her up somewhere.

"Yes, Martha?" The Doctor addressed her with simulated excitement. "Has something happened?"

 _Rose happened_ , Martha thought bitterly. "I'd like to go home."

"What? No!" Rose seemed to be utterly taken aback. "We have only just met!"

_And you two have just got married._

"You two need some time for yourselves, I can see that," Martha explained tiredly. The Doctor and his Rose had better things to do and think about than her.

"That's not fair," the blonde noted, unlocking the door and allowing the dark-skinned companion in. "Not fair at all," she eyed the other girl sadly.

Rose barely wearing anything when with the Doctor was what wasn't fair. Rose being blonde and white was what wasn't fair. Rose being the undying love of the Doctor's was what wasn't fair. But Rose being one of the loveliest people Martha's ever got the chance to meet was what has made her choice to leave a hundred times more difficult.

The Doctor kept his thoughts to himself.


	10. Chapter 10

**Previously…**

_Rose barely wearing anything when with the Doctor was what wasn't fair. Rose being blonde and white was what wasn't fair. Rose being the undying love of the Doctor's was what wasn't fair. But Rose being one of the loveliest people Martha's ever got the chance to meet was what has made her choice to leave a hundred times more difficult._

_The Doctor kept his thoughts to himself._

* * *

**Love and Medicine: Chapter Ten**

"Don't… you needn't leave, Martha!" Rose reached for her.

Martha paid no attention to her words, looking the girl over with disbelief and glee. "Oh, my God! He's fixed you!" There were no signs of Rose's previous terrifying state. Not one.

" _Must_ you go?" Rose tried again. "I'm sure we could-"

"Rose." The Doctor looked at her lovingly. "If Martha thinks it's her time to leave, allow her."

Martha swallowed a heavy sigh. His words _still_ felt like a punch to the face. "He is right, Rose."

The newly-married woman shook her head, shooting a glare the Doctor's way. "No. He is not. The Doctor is merely being an-"

"Do you want Martha to stay with us, Rose?" He asked her, even if he has known her answer all along.

"It would be very sweet of you if you did not leave just yet, Martha," the fair-haired companion looked at the other girl expectantly. "We have barely got any time to know each other, yeah?"

Both the Doctor and his… wife were waiting for Martha's answer, even if expecting for quite different ones.

She took her time. "I'd love to stay," she admitted at last. "But there is no use for me to wander throughout the ship while you two- make use of your wedding night, or something…" Martha turned her face away. _Not snogging every five minutes would be a plus, too._ The Doctor smirked at her. She could have sworn he knew perfectly well what she was thinking about.

 _I'm sure we could postpone it somehow_ , Rose's mind nudged his.

The Time Lord's eyes widened at her suggestion. _I have been dreaming about this night ever since- Now you suggest we put it off? Rose?_

The mental wordless conversation was more than Martha Jones could grasp. She cleared her throat, almost afraid to interrupt something that has felt so _personal_. Intimate, even. Neither of the two newly-weds noticed or heard her when she exited the room. _If_ she were to stay, Martha knew she would need to learn to put up with all this. Seeing others – or those you know quite well - snog was bad enough. Communicating mentally? What would be next? Telepathic love-making? She shuddered. Third wheel, all right… The first thing she had to do was get away from the TARDIS. At least for a dozen hours.

 _Why would you suggest_ that _?_ The Doctor still could not understand Rose's reasoning. _Surely, you don't mean- Not really? Right? Rose?_

Rose shrugged at him. _Martha's left, have you noticed?_

_Has she, now?_

The companion rolled her eyes at him. "Yes."

"Isn't that marvellous? Now we can-"

His manic behaviour has suddenly got on Rose's nerves. "No!" It was very likely Martha was going to remain the only other female passenger on board the TARDIS. Very likely the closest other female she would get the chance to communicate with properly in the foreseeable future. Her following words were both angry and sad. "We can, could, are going to. Yes! But I can't understand you. Am not sure I want to, sometimes."

"Is this all because of my behaviour towards her?"

" _She_ is called Martha. Martha is your companion, just like I am, Doctor! She does not deserve to-"

"Not even if she doesn't want to stay with us any more?"

"I will believe it only if she says so to me in person, without you present, _husband._ It's her life. Her choice."

"Yeah… okay. How long will she be away, how do you think, Rose?"

"I am going to put the dress back on first, if you don't mind, Doctor?"

He was too puzzled to think of a reply.

She has put the dress back on without caring about all of the tiny finishing touches.

"There we are, Doctor," Rose gave him her tongue-touched smile. "Nice, comfortable and- why are you looking at me like that?" She was immediately worried.

Not about herself, though.

_Please, could we-_

Rose shrugged at him, happy about the suggestion. This sort of communication was suddenly making everything seem and feel so much deeper and truer…

 _How could you have survived without telepathy for so long?_ The Doctor's gleeful excitement was contagious. Apparently, he must have even forgotten the fact the Earthling has put her dress back on.

 _My wedding dress!_ She reminded him.

 _I haven't forgotten,_ he assured.

 _What about Martha?_ Rose smirked at him, having noticed a glimpse of annoyance on the alien's face.

_Nothing._

"She wants to stay. I want her to stay with us. Can't we just-"

The Time Lord smiled at her. Martha Jones would find a way to leave them eventually… But for now, he did not care one bit about his more recent companion. It was suddenly not clear if the Doctor has been listening to his bride properly, as his arms have wrapped themselves around her waist… _quite_ accidentally.

_Rose… Are you sure you must keep the dress on, always?_

Rose rolled her eyes at him good-naturedly. _Doctor. Remember, it's not even dark outside._

The Doctor exhaled. "Really?" _Why would you humans stick to_ that _?_

The wife cleared her throat. "It's what I think is appropriate."

 _Fair enough,_ he agreed. _But don't I have the right to worship you… without so many obstacles?_

Her eyes widened. "Are you sure you haven't consumed anything without me knowing?"

The Gallifreyan grinned at her, almost struggling to return to the manner of speaking normal to humans... And majority of other species. "You would know, don't you think so, love?"

He was right. The unimaginable connection between them even this tiny ordinary wedding ceremony must have strengthened – if this hadn't been partly the Doctor's _improvement_ , anyway – the Time Lord winked at her in reaction to this idea – has been making her feel so many new emotions. Either that, or Rose has miraculously acquired the ability to quickly identify and discern all the feelings within her… It was almost becoming too much, really.

The Doctor has pulled her closer. "A side-effect of having had so many emotions attacking you at once, Rose," he muttered soothingly, getting a tiny smile in return.


	11. Chapter 11

**Previously…**

_He was right. The unimaginable connection between them even this tiny ordinary wedding ceremony must have strengthened – if this hadn't been partly the Doctor's_ improvement _, anyway – the Time Lord winked at her in reaction to this idea – has been making her feel so many new emotions. Either that, or Rose has miraculously acquired the ability to quickly identify and discern all the feelings within her… It was almost becoming too much, really._

_The Doctor has pulled her closer. "A side-effect of having had so many emotions attacking you at once, Rose," he muttered soothingly, getting a tiny smile in return._

* * *

**Love and Medicine**

**Chapter Eleven**

"I need to take care of some important things first," Rose nudged the Doctor, ignoring his pout. "The wedding's over. I need to change. Surely, you don't expect me to be wearing this dress forever? Or for another seven or so hours?"

"Why not?" He was honestly surprised. _Don't you like it?_

She rolled her eyes at him. "I love it, of course I do, Doctor. Love all the things the clever TARDIS keeps doing for me, too."

The unmistakable amusement reaching her has only made Rose giggle.

"Must you? Really?"

"I have almost _died_ today," Rose reminded. "Surely, a dress can't be more important than-"

He nodded gravely, but said nothing on the subject, not wishing to return to the might-have-beens. "Does wearing it _hurt_ you, love?"

The girl sighed at him. The way the Time Lord's eyes were travelling up and down the garment was quite curious. She put the blame on his unuttered wish to see the dress off her, for something more, very likely, and giggled lightly. "Does it hurt _you_?" She countered.

"I know what you're thinking," he muttered. "But, Rose… This is more important than _anything_. You wearing a dress meant for a Time Lady can either elate you, cure or _break_ you."

"Do you mean it can turn me into someone else?" All of a sudden, the unbelievable, fantastical ideas no longer seemed so unlikely. She inhaled. "I _am_ someone else. _Husband_."

"This doesn't change the fact you are _human_ , love."

"Are you afraid _a dress_ can do anything? Hurt me? Don't be stupid, Doctor. Has something happened to Martha while she was wearing hers?"

The Doctor sighed. Martha's dress was ordinary. Meant for a human woman. Not created specifically for a person bordering on so many incredible, dangerous things.

"It's your _wedding_ dress… And wearing it is changing you as we speak."

Rose backed away, terrified. "Is this why you wanted-"

"No. Removing it was necessary while working on fixing your wounds," the Doctor assured her. "For ordinary reasons." _And for those other_ , he understood his mistake the moment she froze. Having Martha nearby would have certainly helped right now.

_Do I need to know?_

"First, _I_ need to know. My love. How do you feel? Better? Worse?"

She shook her head, incredulous. _Different._

_Different how?_

"Married to a Time Lord kind of different." Incomplete _kind of different._ Suddenly, the shadow of a smile constantly toying on her lips looked completely fake.

He grabbed her. The Doctor knew one thing that could never, was never to be completed. "Have I missed something during the ceremony? Forgot to say something? To do something?"

_No. The TARDIS keeps urging me to do something, but I don't know what that is._

"Maybe… Maybe it will be gone the moment you take off the dress?" He guessed.

 _Maybe_ , she agreed. _But I suddenly don't want to._ "It's as if, as if it was protecting me somehow? Preparing me for something?"

"I'm glad it does not have any unpleasant side-effects on you, darling." It has more or less opened the way for him, for them to reach for something beyond human tradition. If not for changing them both into two people connected in ways much more complicated than what has been stated in their marriage certificate-

 _What is it?_ Rose was suddenly uncomfortable, the Doctor's loving, caring and puzzling thoughts enveloping her.

The strange welcoming feeling has made her to abandon her original plans entirely. _I am doing something_ right _, is this it, old girl?_ Fine, if the vessel wanted for Rose to keep the exceptional, personally-fitted (the memory of it being somewhat extravagant so as to mask her wounds has made her shudder inwardly - dress on… Why not?

The Doctor eyed his wife lovingly. I _knew you would change your mind, Rose._

_It makes me feel somehow light-headed. Is this supposed to be happening?_

The alien smirked. "The TARDIS simply cannot contain her excitement about us finally being together. It's only natural some of it reaches you."

She blinked. "It's… okay, I suppose. As long as the ship keeps away from invading my personal, my secret thoughts."

"Does it _feel_ like she is doing it?" If he knew his vessel half as well as he believed he did…

"Yes, actually," she sighed.

The Doctor froze. "Do you _want_ her to stop?"

"Of course not," she smiled, aware of the relieved sigh having escaped his lips. "It's just- She wouldn't say. What does such a behaviour mean?"

_You are a part of the family now, Rose. Of course she wants to know how to make you feel better, always._

_What did she mean by_ incomplete _? Surely, she does not mean the fact I am – more or less – still human?_

The Doctor eyed her thoughtfully, a wide grin enlightening his features. "I'm sure she means our marriage bond is incomplete."

_Another kind of marriage? A ritual of some sorts?_

_Yes. In a way._ The Time Lord looked at her with adoration. His wife, his Rose, his love, always so clever.

 _What makes it complete?_ Rose did not look surprised or frightened, just curious.

 _We would need to form a telepathic marriage bond._ He inhaled. _It's nothing frightening_ , he assured. _It's a Time Lord ceremony. Usually only performed between two of the same species… But exceptions are known to happen._

The TARDIS objected loudly.

"What do you mean, this does not have to be an exception?!"

Rose could swear her headache was returning. "It doesn't matter. Just… don't shout," she pleaded. _We will perform whatever is necessary. Just give me a moment, TARDIS?_

 _Do you understand what you have just agreed to, love?_ Rose was surprised to hear fear in his voice.

"Not really," she admitted. "But she is my friend. Considers me a part of the family, you said. The girl can't hurt me."

_Not on intention, no._

_I'm not sure I understand…_

"Martha Jones should be back with us in, say, ten hours," the Doctor changed the topic suddenly. "Should we postpone the ceremony and what comes with it until then, or?

The sudden change in the TARDIS hum has put Rose on alert. "Is her presence absolutely necessary?"

 _On the contrary, love, on the contrary_ , he pulled her into a self-explicatory, breath-taking kiss.

* * *

Only when the bond was properly formed did Rose understand what the _incomplete_ actually meant.

Only when Martha returned did she understand what having two amorous, newly married (bonded, they called it) Time Lords travelling together with you truly meant.

Coming up on them snogging had been nothing, she understood. And maybe, just maybe leaving travelling time and space behind for good has not been such a poor idea, after all.

* * *

**The End**


End file.
